Hospital Bill

[nicola]

When we were in DLP in May my DD2 dislocated her arm and we spent the good part of a day in a Paris hospital where they xrayed and then repeatedly attempted to reduce it unsucessfully. They ended up immobilising it with a huge bandage round her chest : We have the E111 form but no other insurance. There was no mention of having to pay (maybe there was but nobody spoke any English at this horrible old hospital). Anyway, I just received a bill from them for 110 euro It is all written out in French. My sister seems to think because we had E111 we should be covered. Can anyone please shed some light here?

 

[Dee8197]

I thought that the E111 entitled you to free treatment in countries that participate. We always take out seperate insurance anyway. Thankfully we have never had to put it to the test. Hope that your DD's arm is OK now.

 

[nicola]

Thanks Dee8197. As soon as we got home we went straight to hospital and they said that they couldn't believe that the French hospital left it like that as the longer a joint is left dislocated the harder it is to get back in and the greater the risk of long term damage. The doctor back home was able to reduce it in under a minute. There was an almighty crunch and in it went. She has had a lot of pain with it and is still taking Nurofen for internal swelling but it seems to be improving. I am really angry at the way they handled it. They just left us waiting for HOURS in this dirty old hospital and nobody could speak any English. Then after an xray and a feeble attempt to fix her arm they wrapped it up and away we were sent; after a day of waiting. She then had to continue the rest of the week with her right arm wrapped up, not being able to use her arm and we couldn't even give her a bath and to top it off it was 36 degrees for several days in a row; not to mention the pain she was in everytime we tried to pick her up etc... Little did we know that having it all wrapped around her little chest like that could have been causing the potential for long term pain to the joint

 

[nicola]

Cont'd- The worst bit about it is now they want us to pay. I think not!!!!! Have just been on several websites that say that the E111 does entitle you to free emergency healthcare but I wonder doesn that include xrays. It says that you should produce the E111 at the time to treatment, however when I said INSURANCE to them they just shook their heads as they didn't speak any English. I think I will have to get on to Citizen's Advice tomorrow. Anyways, that's my little moan for this evening, thanks for listening!!

 

[diberry]

I'm sorry you had such a bad experience. My next door neighbour had a stroke in France recently and was taken to a hospital in Lyon but his wife was only allowed to visit for 10 minutes a day and very few people in the hospital spoke English. I suppose we wouldn't expect our doctors to be able to speak French but you kind of expect there to be some level of English as you were in (or near) Paris.
Anyway I found this info: "The Form E111 covers you for any treatment that becomes necessary during the course of your visit. Always keep a photocopy of your Form E111 with the original. This is important if you apply for treatment in France, Germany, Hungary, Italy, the Netherlands, Slovakia and Spain, as a photocopy is required as well as your original E111. You will usually be given back your E111 but the photocopy will be kept. However, in some countries the authorities may keep the original E111. "
Try this website:
http://www.dh.gov.uk/PolicyAndGuida...AAArticle/fs/en?CONTENT_ID=4055683&chk=52JpIk
Hope you can get it sorted. If you need help with the bill they sent you I speak French and would be happy to help. Send me a PM.

 

[nicola]

Thanks Diana, Will have a look at it now but I think I read on another website that it doesn't cover for xrays. As I can't really read the bill they sent us I am not sure what they have charged us for. I do speak a tiny bit of french, took it as an A level and having also spent most of my life in Canada, but my knowledge of the language does not include medical jargon unfortunately. I will have a look at that website now and thank you for finding it and passing it on to me

 

[diberry]

I just added a bit to the end of my post Nicola - don't know if you saw it or not.

 

[Dee8197]

Nicola
It all sounds like a very painful experience for all of you.
Are you sure that what you have been sent is a bill, in that it requires payment, it's not just detailing what the cost would have been if you had to pay is it ? In private medicine you see the consultant etc and then you are sent the bill - its not asking for payment just telling you what your insurance company have paid.

 

[nicola]

Thanks again Diana, I will have a look at the bill again tomorrow and maybe send you a PM to see if you can interpret certain words for me. Its really good of you to offer to help Your poor neighbour and his wife. That must have been very frightening and then not being able to support each other through it due to the 10 minute time limit.

 

[nicola]

Dee8197, Can't remember exact words at top as don't have it beside me but I saw them on a website I was looking up and it means 'demand for payment', unfortunately.

 

[diberry]

Thanks again Diana, I will have a look at the bill again tomorrow and maybe send you a PM to see if you can interpret certain words for me. Its really good of you to offer to help Your poor neighbour and his wife. That must have been very frightening and then not being able to support each other through it due to the 10 minute time limit.

He sadly didn't make it so they had to fly the body back and she just got a terrifying bill last week but the insurance company have sorted it for her. (They're elderly - the neighbours, not the insurance company!!!) A very good reason to be insured up to the hilt!!!!

 

[diberry]

Thanks for the info re a photocopy Di.... er we won't even go there!

Sorry Dee, I'm being really stupid no doubt but I don't get it

 

[Dee8197]

Nicola

Sorry to hear that. I'm sure it will work out OK

BTW Don't worry about the "8197" I had to use the figures in order to register but just Dee will be fine

 

[nicola]

Oh no Diana, I am very sorry to hear about your neighbour and how terrible that must have been for his wife in a foreign country at the time.